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Peer Singh v. The State of Madhya Pradesh

Criminal Appeal · 2019 INSC 482Decided 9 Apr 2019
Criminal Appeal No. 743 of 2012
Justice S.A. Bobde · Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul · Justice Deepak Gupta

Background

Fifteen people were tried for the murder of one Babusingh, who was attacked by an armed mob while riding home on a motorcycle at night in Madhya Pradesh. The trial court convicted seven of them, including Peer Singh, and sentenced them to life imprisonment; the High Court upheld the conviction. This judgment disposed of three connected appeals (by Peer Singh and two co-accused) together, since they arose from the same incident and trial, the main question being whether these three appellants were actually present at the scene.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court found that the first information recorded at the spot ("Dehati Nalishi") did not name Peer Singh or his two co-appellants at all, and the key eyewitness's own statement to police shortly after the incident likewise omitted their names: he only added their names much later when testifying in court, with no credible explanation for the discrepancy. Since the sole eyewitness linking these three men to the crime contradicted his own earlier statement and the spot report, the Court held this created a grave doubt about their presence at the scene, and that doubt had to benefit the accused. The Court accordingly allowed the appeals, set aside the conviction and sentence of Peer Singh, Bhagwansingh, and Gajrajsingh, and ordered their immediate release.

Lesson Learnt

In criminal trials, inconsistencies between a witness's earliest statement (recorded right after the incident) and their later court testimony can be fatal to the prosecution's case: courts give the benefit of the doubt to the accused when identification evidence is unreliable or materially contradicted.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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